Accenture to buy Australian cybersecurity firm CyberCX for reported $650 mln
A wave of devastating cyberattacks has battered Australia, including a 2022 breach at telecom major Optus that exposed the personal data of up to 10 million users, and a hack on health insurer Medibank affecting nearly 10 million customers.
In July, Qantas Airways disclosed that criminals had infiltrated one of its call centres, accessing personal information of six million customers.
Private equity firm BGH Capital, which is selling CyberCX, has not disclosed any financial terms. Accenture declined to provide additional details, while BGH Capital didn't respond to Reuters' requests for comment on the reported valuation.
The deal underscores the surging demand for advanced digital security services as businesses worldwide face increasingly sophisticated cyber threats that disrupt operations and compromise sensitive data.
Melbourne-based CyberCX was formed in 2019 through the merger of 12 smaller cybersecurity firms backed by BGH Capital.
The company now employs about 1,400 people and runs security operations centres across Australia and New Zealand, with offices in London and New York.
CyberCX is led by John Paitaridis, formerly managing director of Optus Business, and Chief Strategy Officer Alastair MacGibbon, Australia's former national cybersecurity coordinator.
The leadership's ties to Optus are notable, given the telecommunications company's 2022 data breach, which exposed names, birth dates, addresses, phone numbers, email contacts and passport and driver's license numbers.
Since 2015, Accenture has completed 20 security acquisitions, including recent purchases of Brazilian cyber defense firm Morphus, MNEMO Mexico and Spain-based Innotec Security.
On the domestic front, the firm entered into a $700 million collaborative agreement with Telstra in February, aiming to implement AI capabilities across the telecommunications company.
($1 = A$1.5385)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Fed-up locals in 'overcrowded' suburb slam the hundreds of units being built on their doorstep - warning the area is already at breaking point
Sydneysiders living in a suburb set to receive hundreds of new units have voiced their anger at the pressure on their already 'overcrowded' and under-resourced community. Construction giant Meriton has proposed 620 new units in Carlingford, 22km north-west of the CBD, with the first stage under construction promising seven luxury residential towers, soaring to 29 levels. The development on 18 Shirley Street and 263–273 Pennant Hills Road, which boasts the tallest towers in the area, has been met with backlash from locals who feel the area is already overcrowded. Parramatta Council reluctantly supported Meriton's proposal for the new development in 2023, citing fears the area could have lost out on community infrastructure if they didn't back the plans. 'We feel like our hands are tied because we're going to get the developments anyway,' Councillor Michelle Garrard said at the time. Meriton's new development, which temporarily shut down last week after construction worker Paulo Mau'u died on site and another was left fighting for his life, includes plans for a community centre, library and a supermarket. However, locals claim there isn't sufficient infrastructure in the area such as schools and hospitals to support the already overcrowded community. Carlingford resident Claudine told Daily Mail the development is 'driven by money and very little thought'. 'They need to fix the roads first before they start moving more people in, that's the biggest thing,' she said. 'The traffic is already really s**t around here. It would be nice if they had a plan for that too.' She stressed the need for more local schools and hospitals adding: 'I was in hospital recently in ED and there were people waiting for almost 48 hours to be seen because there's too many people.' Young couple James and Amelia voiced their concerns that the new development will be unaffordable for local families. One-bedroom apartments in the development are on the market starting from $595,000 while at the other end of the scale four-bedrooms are priced up to $1,895,000. 'People are being pushed further and further west,' James said. 'No one can afford to live where they've grown up. 'I know families that have grown up here but they've had to move all the way out west because everything has shot up in price or been turned into apartment blocks they can't afford.' The couple, who live about 6km away in West Ryde, said new high-rise developments have 'blocked off the view' and fear the same for Carlingford. Sandra (pictured), who moved to Sydney in 1972, said the new apartments represent the 'changing face of Australia' 'There's so many new developments being built but there's no infrastructure to support it,' James added. 'People out here are already struggling to get jobs locally.' Sandra, who moved to Sydney in 1972 for a working holiday and decided to stay, said the new apartments represent the 'changing face of Australia'. 'I don't like it, it's so sad,' she said. 'We came here in the 70s and there were so many wonderful, fabulous opportunities for everybody, but it's all changed now. 'I wouldn't tell anybody to emigrate here anymore and if I was rich, I'd go back home, but I'm not. 'There's too many units being put up everywhere. It's horrible how the city is changing.' Victor, who recently moved to Carlingford from Brighton-Le-Sands, said he feels there's 'too many people for such a small area'. 'I only moved in three weeks ago and I can feel it's growing so fast - it feels full,' he added. Local resident Alina said the area was in desperate need of more 'shops, cafes and restaurants'. A spokesperson for Meriton said they 'worked closely with council to ensure the project addresses local concerns such as traffic, parking, and infrastructure needs'. The proposal 'went through an extensive planning process, including assessment by independent planning and design review panels, referrals to key government agencies such as the Department of Education and Transport for NSW, and thorough community consultation. 'The proposal was endorsed by Council in July 2024 following a comprehensive assessment report. 'In addition to housing, the project will deliver over 5,000m² of new public open space, interactive children's playgrounds, upgraded pedestrian links, on-site childcare, specialty and service based retail shops, a national supermarket, and a new 2,500m² Community Hub featuring a library and multiple community facilities, bringing improved and lasting benefits to both residents in the local Carlingford community and beyond. 'Importantly, the development will contribute significantly to NSW's critical housing supply, with 90 per cent of apartments at The Carling priced well below Sydney's median house price of $1.5million. 'To further support home buyers, Meriton is offering Australia's lowest two-year fixed home loan rate of just four per cent, making purchasing more affordable than renting for many. 'The apartments have been well received by the market and are selling strongly.'
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
How to get your AT&T settlement
Millions of AT&T customers could now be eligible for a claim of up to $7,500 each. In March last year, a vast data breach impacted 73 million current and former account holders. Private information, including birth dates and Social Security numbers, was stolen by hackers and shared in a dataset on the dark web. Then, in a second strike, which was revealed in July 2024, hackers managed to download massive amounts of AT&T data from a third-party cloud platform. Call records and texts belonging to 'nearly all' AT&T cellular customers were breached, the company said, reported the BBC. Lawsuits ensued across the country in both state and federal courts. On August 4, the company said that they had agreed to a settlement fund in federal court. For the first breach, a $149 million all-cash fund was established to settle the claims, and for the second, a $28 million all-cash payment was made. According to the settlement website, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas is set to have a final approval hearing on December 3, later this year. Meanwhile, any AT&T customers can file for compensation in between. How do I submit a claim? Those who had their data exposed, from the announcement made in March 2024, are each eligible for up to $5,000 and can make claims for "payment for losses that occurred in 2019, or later," according to the website. People impacted in the July announcement are eligible for up to $2,500 "for losses that occurred on or after April 14, 2024," the settlement administration said. To receive the payment, customers must provide documentation showing that the losses they incurred are "fairly traceable" to the AT&T data breaches. If your data was leaked in both breaches, you may be eligible for up to $7,500. You would then become what the settlement administration calls a "overlap settlement class member." The deadline to file a claim is set for November 18, 2025. You will receive the payment, if successfully claimed, in December at the earliest. 'Please be patient,' the settlement claim site said.
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
The ultra-wealthy have exploited Australia's tax system for too long. It's time to ensure everyone pays their fair share
Unions want to tackle intergenerational inequality by reforming Australia's tax system. For the first time in living memory, younger Australians risk facing lower living standards than those before them. This is not acceptable to the union movement, so our one big idea is to rebalance the tax system so that productivity gains are fairly shared, housing becomes more affordable, and essential services are properly funded. Australia's current tax system is exploited by big business and the ultra-wealthy, entrenching intergenerational inequality and placing affordable housing out of young workers' reach, which threatens the services and infrastructure we all rely on. We need a minimum 25% tax on gas export revenues, a minimum 25% tax for trust funds and individuals earning more than $1m, and a one investment property limit for negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount benefits, with the grandfathering of current arrangements for five years. These changes have a simple intention: to make sure everyone pays their fair share, so productivity gains flow across society fairly. These proposed reforms would help restore fairness and opportunity for young Australians to get ahead in their lives. For the past 25 years, productivity increases have gone back into company profits, shareholder dividends, share buybacks and executive bonuses. Working people know that every time they check their bank accounts, there is no 'direct debit system' where the extra profits generated by increased productivity are automatically shared with them. Australia is a rich country but, for decades, as the 'economic pie' has got bigger, corporations have not just taken their own bigger slice, they have been eating into ours. The way to stop this is to make sure workers have strong rights at work to get the pay rises they deserve and to make sure our tax system ensures everyone – not just the ordinary worker – pays their fair share of taxes. There are flaws in our tax system that disadvantage younger Australians and reinforce inter-generational inequity. Just 1% of taxpayers own 25% of investment properties, fuelling house prices, skyrocketing rents and putting home ownership out of reach. House prices have gone up at twice the rate of wages in the last 25 years. The result? Workers can no longer afford to live near their jobs, while young people face high rents and are priced out of buying homes. It is true that housing supply needs to increase, but the tax system is adding to the affordability problem and that needs to change. The loudest complaints will come from those who have gamed the system to accumulate enormous economic and political power. Australia's economy is dominated by an artificially inflated property market, in addition a small number of large companies in a small number of industries. Claims that working people will automatically be better off if productivity increases are wrong. Dr Jim Stanford's recent paper on productivity shows that if real wages had grown at the same rate of productivity since 2000, average wages would be 18% – or $350 per week – higher than they are now. What you won't hear from big business is the real reason productivity growth in Australia has been slow: they have prioritised distributing profits rather than investing in capital, research and people. Workers' rights are not 'red tape', they are the way we get pay rises and limits on working hours. They are essential to workers benefiting from the productivity gains our hard work creates. If we take them away, workers will get even less. Our proposed reforms are targeted and achievable. These are simple changes that close loopholes and restore balance, because we recognise that the problem isn't everyday investors who are looking to build a nest egg with a housing investment, the problem is that the current tax system rewards investing in housing as an asset class so the richest mega-investors are accumulating a large number of properties, tying up capital that could be invested in things that contribute to productivity growth and forcing property prices up beyond what any ordinary working person can afford. Working people pay their fair share of tax, we just want everyone else to as well. Ninety-one people with an income over $1m paid no income tax in 2022-23. Not one cent! When the very wealthy pay less tax than a bus driver or an aged care worker, something is very wrong. Trust funds have also become tax minimisation schemes for rich people, and mega-profitable resource companies are also getting away with paying little or no corporate tax. Our proposals are about ensuring the economy works for those who actually keep it running: working people. Sally McManus is a trade unionist and political activist who has served as the secretary of the Australia Council of Trade Unions since 2017
